After a fire burned through a recycling plant for electrical equipment two weeks ago in Columbia County in New York State, the environmental tests that followed alone were cause for anxiety among residents.

State and federal officials tested for PCBs as well as lead, chromium and volatile organic compounds at the plant, operated by TCI Inc. in West Ghent, N.Y., as concern rose about the toxic chemicals that might have been spread by smoke and soot over farms and homes.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

As they prepare for a cleanup of the site of the Aug. 1-2 fire, which is to begin on Monday, state environmental officials are emphasizing that testing so far has turned up very low levels of toxic contamination and that it seems to have been contained in the building that burned, sparing surrounding areas.

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/17/electronics-recycling-fire-unnerves-a-n-y-town/